Jurisdictions

Subscribe to Jurisdictions via RSS

On December 8, 2011 the House Financial Services Subcommittee on  Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity approved legislation eliminating the Federal Insurance Office’s (“FIO”) and the Office of Financial Research’s (“OFR”) authority to subpoena information from insurance companies.  H.R. 3559 (the Insurance Data Protection Act), was introduced by Representative Steve Stivers (R-OH) and was approved by a party-line vote of 7-5, with each Republican on the Subcommittee voting in favor. …
Read More Subcommittee Approves Removal of FIO Subpoena Power Over Insurers

On December 9, 2011, the Federal Office of Insurance (“FIO”) held its first meeting at the U.S. Department of Treasury, entitled “Insurance Regulation in the United States: Modernization and Improvement.”  The conference was attended by insurance regulators and industry representatives. …
Read More FIO Conference — Reaffirming Support of State Regulation

We previously reported on the first instance decision of Re Digital Satellites Warranty Cover (see our previous blog here). Digital Satellites Warranty Cover Limited (DSWCL) and Satellite Services (SS) (the Appellants) were in the business of selling extended warranties to satellite television customers. …
Read More UK: Court of Appeal Upholds Decision That Extended Warranties are Regulated Insurance Products

On 8 December 2011, Julian Adams, Director of Insurance at the Financial Services Authority (FSA), explained in a speech to the Association of British Insurers how UK (re)insurance companies may be permitted to start their Solvency II implementation as initially scheduled on 1 January 2013 rather than on the delayed implementation date of 1 January 2014. …
Read More UK: Insurers Given Chance to Early Adopt Solvency II

In March 2011, the European Court of Justice ruled that, with effect from 21 December 2012, the use of gender as a risk factor by insurers should not result in individual differences in premiums and benefits for men and women (see our previous blog post here). The Government has expressed its disappointment with the judgment, believing that financial services providers should be allowed to make sensible decisions based on sound analysis of relevant risk factors, but is nevertheless required to implement the ECJ’s judgment. …
Read More UK: Consultation on Use of Gender as a Risk Factor

Last month, the Delaware Department of Insurance (the “Department”) issued Domestic/Foreign Insurers Bulletin No. 46 to provide guidance regarding the implementation of the Civil Union and Equality Act of 2011 (the “Act”), which becomes effective January 1, 2012.  The Act provides that two persons of the same sex who establish a civil union shall be subject to the same requirements and entitled to the same rights, protections and benefits as married couples under Delaware law. …
Read More Delaware Department of Insurance Issues Bulletin Relating to the Implementation of the Civil Union and Equality Act of 2011

The New Rules officially took effect on 15 October 2011 and since then, all foreign individuals (unless exempted) working in the PRC must participate in the PRC Social Insurance System. The New Rules affect every foreign individual (non-Chinese national) who is in possession of an employment permit, which would include a permanent residence permit of foreigners, and is lawfully working for an entity registered in the PRC, including a PRC subsidiary or a representative office of a foreign company. …
Read More People’s Republic of China (PRC) – Interim Measures for Foreigners to Participate in the PRC Social Insurance System (New Rules) Require All Foreign Individuals Working in China to Participate in the PRC Social Insurance System

CMS ISSUES MEDICAL LOSS RATIO REGULATIONS

Background. Among the most hotly debated provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) have been the medical loss ratio (MLR) requirements, which were intended to lower healthcare costs by requiring health insurance companies to spend less on marketing and overhead expenses and more on care. …
Read More Healthcare Update: CMS Issues Medical Loss Ratio Regulations; HHS Rejects Two State MLR Waiver Requests